


without destination

by ZephyrEden



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: But it won't last, F/F, Friendship, Gen, LOTS OF FRIENDSHIP ALL AROUND, M/M, already got some ideas for future stuff???, but guess what, i'm an angst god and can only angst, it was just supposed to be happy and nice and fluff, road trip au, so there might be angst later on idk, spoiler i love riku a lot, then there's more nice fluffy silliness, there's gonna be angst later on spoiler, this wasn't supposed to be a chaptered fic but??
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-21
Updated: 2018-07-16
Packaged: 2019-05-26 10:03:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,458
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14998493
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZephyrEden/pseuds/ZephyrEden
Summary: There was no way this wasn't the best idea they had ever had. Taking a semester off school to go road tripping with no destination other than "be back home before next semester starts?" Yeah, there was no way this wasn't a fantastic idea.Or, Sora, Riku, and Kairi decide to take a road trip with no plans, no destinations, and no worries.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> i woke up in the middle of the night to write this. i'll proof it in the morning, i only have an hour and half to sleep before i have to be alive again.
> 
> inspired entirely by @braveheartriku on tumblr, you are very good at making instantly inspiring au tweet threads.

It’s only after Kairi’s tried to ignore the incessant buzzing under her pillow for several minutes that she finds the willpower to pry her tired eyes open. She blinks slowly, a yawn already forcing its way past her lips as her hand fumbles against the rumpled sheets to find her phone. Her fingers curl around the cool surface of the glass, lingering under the cold fabric of the pillowcase for a few moments until the vibrating really starts to get on her nerves. She brings the screen to her face, squinting despite the brightness being turned all the way down.

She groans. 4:37 AM is far too early to be awake.

She contemplates for a half second just turning off the alarm, rolling over and going back to sleep, but there’s a soft clatter coming from outside the room that convinces her to get up. She yawns again while she sits up and stretches, a whine coming from the back of her throat when her back releases a few small cracks that make her feel the slightest bit awake. It’s still on heavy legs that she stumbles out of bed, though, blindly searching for the clothes she set out the night before and only tripping over her bags once in the process.

She’s hiding another yawn in her shoulder, pulling on her shirt as she leaves the bedroom to walk into the living area of the apartment and turning towards the small kitchen. She gives a tired smile to its occupant, softness lining the corners of her mouth. “Should’ve known you’d be the first one up,” she says in a half whisper, trying to keep her voice down.

Riku chuckles under his breath, turning towards her to pour fresh brewed coffee into the mugs set on the counter between them. “I’m always the first one up,” he says easily, rinsing the empty pot out before putting it back.

“Yeah, but-” Kairi starts before getting distracted by the coffee in front of her. It’s in her favorite pink mug, warmth seeping into her hands while she thumbs the yellow stars patterned on it. The smell is heavenly and absolutely welcome this early in the morning and she can’t help but sigh after taking a sip of it, even if it is still too bitter for her taste. “But I thought it might be me this time,” she continues as she puts the cup down, reaching for the sugar while Riku grabs the milk from the fridge and pours a generous amount into her cup before doing the same with his own.

He grins, lifting his mug so it partially hides his mouth. “You always think that.” He watches her roll her eyes and feels the corners of his lips rise higher at that. He opens the drawer and hands her a spoon from it before he ends up with a soft slap on the arm for that comment.

She shakes her head instead but takes the spoon, the metal clinking against the ceramic while she turns to lean against the counter with her back towards him. “So, what are we gonna do about him?”

Riku sighs, leaving the kitchen to walk the few feet to who she’s talking about. “Told him if he wasn’t gonna share the bed he’d be better off just starting on the floor.”

Which is where Sora is now, half tangled in a duvet and sprawled out on the hard floor with only half his left leg still remaining on the cushions above. He’s sleeping pretty soundly regardless, his mouth wide open and leaking drool a little bit because of it.

“Gonna wake up any time soon?” Riku asks despite knowing the answer, nudging Sora in the side with his foot. Sora gives out a stunted, almost choked, snore in answer, making Kairi slap her hand over her mouth to muffle the sudden laughter bubbling in her throat and confirming Riku’s suspicions altogether. He shakes his head with a fond sigh, “We’ll get him up after we get the bags loaded up. I’m not carrying him down the stairs again.”

Kairi giggles again at the memory of the last time he did that; Sora woke up halfway down and jolted in confusion, causing Riku to lose his balance and sending them both crashing down to the ground floor. They had bruises for weeks after that. Riku moves to stand beside her and she leans her head against his shoulder without hesitation, both of them enjoying the comfortable quiet as they take their time draining their mugs.

Once they’re done, Kairi takes the mugs to wash them out and leaves them on the drainboard, dumping the coffee grinds while she’s at it, leaving Riku to start gathering the bags. His own are already by the front door, but Sora’s are half open with their contents scattered around the living room. With another sigh, he gathers everything up and shoves it back in its place, forcing the zippers closed before hefting the bags up with his own. Kairi’s waiting with the door held open, her own bag in her hands while her backpack is slung comfortably on her shoulders. He nods in thanks before they both start down the stairs.

At the bottom waits Sora’s teal Volkswagen bus, the old worn down thing something he managed to find on the cheap that he uses almost exclusively to drive to the beach and back. He offered it up almost immediately when they first had the idea for this trip.

Kairi lifts the back window to the trunk open, letting Riku dump Sora and his own bags in first before tossing her own on top, leaving her backpack hooked over her shoulders and motioning for him to close the trunk.

There’s a faint sense of finality when the sound of it closing echoes down the empty streets of their quiet beach town. Neither of them makes any attempt to move, instead both of them staring distantly towards the half open door to Riku’s apartment on the second floor.

“Are you sure you’re okay doing this?” she asks quietly, a little more serious. They had all saved long and hard for this, even taking an entire semester off so they could take their time with it. But a semester was a long time. It wasn’t a big deal for her to leave, she knew everything she had was safe back at the apartment she shared with Xion. Even for Sora, he stayed in the dorms with Roxas during the school year but had spent the summer crashing either in his van or at Riku’s place.

“It’s fine,” Riku shrugs. “Aqua said she’d keep an eye on things here and Terra’s got my bike. There’s nothing to worry about. Besides, I’ve got what’s most important coming with me.”

Kairi tilts her head, turning to face him. “What’s that?”

Riku leans down towards her with a slight smirk, flicking her lightly on the forehead. “My friends.”

Kairi swats his hand away and purses her lips, trying to look put out despite the crinkling around her eyes saying otherwise. “Sap,” she teases.

He laughs and shrugs again, his half-done bun coming loose with the movement. “Maybe,” he admits with a smile as they head back up.

Sora hasn’t moved since they left, not that that’s a surprise, so Riku moves towards him and gets ready to start the process that is getting Sora up. “Can you get the lights?” he asks, unaware that Kairi is already flicking the switch in the bathroom off and making sure none of the other lights are on. “Don’t be a pain this time,” Riku mutters under his breath, knocking Sora’s leg off the couch to the floor.

His breathing doesn’t even falter.

“Okay,” Riku says to himself, bending down to grab both of Sora’s arms. “Come on, time to go,” he grunts as he pulls up the lump of dead weight.

Sora finally gives a whining groan in protest but bends his knees so Riku can pull him to his feet. “Cold,” he mumbles past a yawn, the heel of his palm rubbing at his still closed eye. Riku hums in response, grabbing the fluffy duvet off ground and throwing it over Sora’s shoulders where he instinctually grabs at it and pulls it tighter around him.

“Stay standing for a minute,” Riku says, watching Sora’s swaying body for a moment to make sure he isn’t about to fall right back to the ground before going to slip on his shoes and grabbing Sora’s own before coming back.

“I’ve got the snacks!” Kairi cheers a bit louder than she’s been yet, holding up the plastic bags full of junk food that they bought the night before. She’s steps up to the boys, poking Sora in the shoulder which pushes him back a bit too easily. “You sure you’re okay to walk, Sora?” she questions with slight concern.

He grunts in response.

“Good enough for me,” Riku nods. He grabs both duvet covered shoulders and guides the brunette towards the door. “Got the keys?”

“Both of ‘em,” Kairi grins, the excitement really starting to set in. The keys jangle in her hand as she pulls the door shut behind them and locks up, turning just in time to see Riku help Sora down the stairs. She tries not to laugh, watching as he tries to patiently let Sora slowly walk down despite his growing frustration at how long it’s taking and how his grip tightens and a split second of worry flashes across his face every time Sora almost misses a step. She shakes her head, letting them get down a ways before she follows. It’s always the same with those two.

“ _Yes_ ,” Sora hisses in relief as soon as Riku pulls the side door to the van open. He practically tosses himself across the bench that is the back seat, instantly falling back asleep.

Kairi scrunches her nose as she looks at the back. “We should’ve cleaned it out.” The van only had one back seat, the bench pressed up against the trunk that Sora was sleeping on, leaving the rest of it as open space up until the front seats. Which meant there was plenty of room for mess. The sand they were used to, given the vehicle’s primary usage, as were the secondhand rug and the towels and general accumulation of fabric that he seemed to collect. But there was also a bag full of seashells (Kairi thinks they might be for her), dirty clothes, empty bottles and wrappers, and what might have once been a banana – all of it strewn about the area.

They both sigh as Riku slams the door shut, the sound echoing once again while he walks over to the driver’s side. “We’ll worry about it later.” He catches the keys Kairi throws to him, hopping into the driver’s seat and pushing the keys into the ignition. “Which way, princess?”

Kairi presses her lips into a thin line, closing her eyes to think. This was usually more of Sora’s thing, but since he was sleeping… “That way,” she answers after a minute, pointing at her window, towards the east.

They both smile as the van rumbles to life. “Got it,” Riku nods, pulling out of the parking lot and heading down the empty streets east.

 

~ ~ ~

“Mmhnng…”

“Oh, he’s finally waking up.”

The soft sounds of acoustic guitar tickle his ears and he faintly recognizes it as one of the CDs Xion made for Kairi a while ago, but he can’t place what song it is. It’s not the music that wakes him up, though, as much as it’s the light that’s starting to filter in and reflect towards his eyes. He squints to protect himself as he pushes himself up, yawning and stretching before scratching at his bedhead. “What time is it?” he starts to mumble, eyes finally blinking enough to be open. “Whoa, it’s sunrise?!” He flies out of his seat, kneeling in the space between the front seats as he shoves himself towards his friends. Despite seeing the sunrise a thousand times before, he stares at this one like it’s the first time, enthralled with the colors the sky is turning.

“Good morning to you, too,” Kairi giggles, ruffling his already disastrous hair.

“’Morning!” he greets back cheerfully before his brow furrows. “Hey, why didn’t you guys wake me up?! I wanted to see the start of the adventure!”

Riku snorts, drawing Sora’s narrowing eyes to him. “Wake you up? You must still be dreaming.”

“Hey!” Sora starts to retort before being interrupted by the loud grumbles and growls of his stomach. They all fall quiet, glancing at his stomach before two sets of eyes turn towards Riku.

He nods in understanding, a slight smile on his face. “Okay, okay, next stop breakfast.”

Sora and Kairi high-five, Kairi turning the music up now that she doesn’t have to worry about waking anyone. There’s some idle conversation going on, mostly making fun of the touristy billboards they keep passing, but Sora’s eyes stay focused on the sunrise until the sky is blue. There’s a sense of giddiness building up inside him and as he feels the humming vibrations from the floor beneath him, sees the blue skies and the looks of happiness on his friends’ faces, he knows what it is. As long he’s with his friends, he knows this will be a great adventure.


	2. Chapter 2

“McDonalds! McDonalds! McDonalds!”

Riku rolls his eyes, watching another sign advertising the next exit pass by. The other two have been at this for about five minutes now and he’s honestly surprised they haven’t gotten tired of it yet. “You two do know that chanting won’t get us there any faster, right? It’s still three miles away.”

“Three miles?” Sora cries, deflating against the side of Kairi’s chair. “That’s like forever. I’ll starve before then.”

Kairi leans down to fish through the plastic bag at her feet, finding a cardboard box and tearing the lid open. “Here,” she offers, taking a packet of gummies from the box and handing it to Sora.

“That’s not the same,” he pouts, though he doesn’t waste any time ripping the plastic to get to the squishy little fruits inside. Thirty seconds barely pass before he’s back to nudging Kairi with a headful of spiky hair. “Kaiiii, I need _more_ ,” he whines, stomach still audibly growling.

“We’re gonna be there in like five minutes,” Riku sighs, stepping on the gas a little more despite their already speed limit breaking speed.

“I’m a growing boy, Riku!” Sora proclaims, sitting back on his ankles so he’s squarely in the middle again. “I need sustenance!”

“Growing wider maybe,” Riku mumbles just loud enough for the other two to hear.

“Hey!” Sora yells, reeling back in faux offense. “Just because I don’t bench press cars all day-“

“I _don’t_ bench press cars-“

“-doesn’t mean that I’m not swol, too.”

Kairi giggles while Riku snorts. “Yeah, “swol,” that’s what you are.”

Sora narrows his eyes, leaning back towards Kairi so he can get a better view of Riku. “Hey. You tryin’ to start a fight or something?”

Riku shakes his head, but can’t stop the smile pulling at his lips. “No, I’m driving. But I’ll fight you in the McDonald’s parking lot if that’s what you’re after.”

Sora perks up at the sound of that, not because of the challenge (he knows he’d never beat Riku in a one-on-one fight. He’s not even sure he could beat him in a ten-on-one fight), but at the name of their patiently awaited breakfast haven. He watches as the van drifts over to the exit lane and turns until it hits a road that looks like the pit stop equivalent of the Vegas strip.

Sora and Kairi see the treasured golden arches and immediately start chanting again, cheering loudly when Riku parks the van and pulls the keys from the ignition.

“Aw, what? No drive thru?” Sora complains as he falls back onto the floor, rolling over to the sliding door.

“You’ll thank me later,” Riku replies while stretching his arms above his head.

Kairi pulls the sliding door open, quickly grabbing hold of Sora before he rolls out onto the asphalt. “Especially you. You know you’ll start getting stir crazy once we’re on the road for a few hours with no breaks. Take the opportunity to really stretch your legs.”

“Fine,” Sora sighs, flipping over until his feet are leaving the van first. His sluggish instantly change when he sees the doors to the fast food building, though. “Okay, let’s go!” he says in a rush, running towards it as fast as he can.

“Sora!” Kairi yells after him. She huffs, grabbing his sandals and aiming for the back of his head when she throws them. She’s disappointed she only manages to hit his back. He looks back at her with his cheeks puffed out and she returns the expression tenfold. “No shoes, no service.”

That gets him to listen. He quickly scrambles to get the shoes on, flailing as Riku grabs him in a half headlock and starts dragging him in backwards. They wait for Kairi before they step up to the counter to order. Riku and Kairi share a look and he nods. “Two coffees, three hash browns, an egg white McMuffin, and two burritos. Sora?”

Sora cracks his knuckles before slapping his hands on the counter, making the cashier jump slightly. “Okay I need two orders of hot cakes – full meal for both, five hash browns, eight burritos with _extra_ salsa, three sausage McMuffins, a fruit cup, and hmm an orange juice.” He smiles brightly as he finishes his order, both of his friends holding their faces in their hands.

The cashier blinks a few times, vaguely frightened by the amount of food the smaller boy in front of him just ordered. “Will, uh… Will that be all?”

“Yes,” Sora nods. “No, wait-“

“ _Yes_ , that’s all,” Riku cuts in, shoving Sora behind him as he hands the cashier a credit card.

“Come on, Sora, let’s find a table,” Kairi says to distract him, dragging him over to a booth by the indoor playground. She’s half surprised that he doesn’t try to dive in there, but she supposes getting stuck for twenty minutes the last time might have taught him a lesson. She watches as he slides down the length of the bench, knocking the back of his feet against the booth while he waits the few minutes it takes for Riku to returns with two overflowing trays of food.

He slides into the bench next to Kairi, both of them wondering if half a table is even enough to fit all of Sora’s food. The brunette makes grabby hands towards the breakfast buffet he ordered and nearly bursts into tears of joy when he finally pops the plastic lid and shoves half of a pancake into his mouth in one bite. It’s a wonder he doesn’t choke on it.

Riku and Kairi enjoy their breakfast at a normal speed while Sora tears through his like the world is ending. “It’s almost… amazing,” Kairi says, sipping her coffee. “I always forget just how much he actually eats.”

Riku swallows his last bite of food then crumples up the paper wrapper. “I spend twice as much on groceries whenever he stays with me.”

Kairi raises an eyebrow. “But you have like… nothing at your place.”

Riku gives her a look. “Exactly.”

“Ah…” she trails, nodding in understand. She places a gentle hand on his shoulder. “My condolences.”

“So!” Sora interrupts, food stuffed in his cheek so he can talk around it. “Where are we headed?”

“Uh…” Kairi starts, looking at Riku then shrugging. “East? Do we know what’s east?”

Riku shrugs as well. “Hell if I know. We could always stop at a service plaza, see if they’ve got advertisements for tourist spots. You guys like that kind of stuff, right?”

“Yes!” they both answer enthusiastically, eyes sparkling.

“We could probably find some cool places that offer tours for exploring and stuff,” Kairi suggests.

“Or find, like, the biggest ball of yarn!” Sora practically yells, leaning halfway over the table.

“So, we’ll look for tourist spots then?” Riku asks and they nod in answer. He twists his lips, slouching and looking up at the yellowing ceiling tiles. “I bet if we drive down this road they’ll have some cheesy billboards for stuff.”

“What are we waiting for then?!” Sora shouts, jumping out of his seat.

Kairi laughs again, leaning against Riku’s arm for support while the current driver rolls his eyes. “Finish your food, then we’ll go.”

Both of them regret witnessing him eat that fast.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so this au is basically really silly until we hit some angst and then it gets a bit more serious but still sticks with the silliness. there's no real? plot? so idk don't get too disappointed lmao

**Author's Note:**

> [twitter](http://twitter.com/deepseasalt_) | [tumblr](http://deepseasalt.tumblr.com) | [carrd](http://zephyreden.carrd.co)


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